Epidendrosaurus - Facts and Figures

Epidendrosaurus - Facts and Figures Name: Epidendrosaurus (Greek for lizard in the tree); pronounced EP-ih-DEN-dro-SORE-us Habitat: Woodlands of Asia Historical Period: Late Jurassic (150 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 6 inches long and a few ounces Diet: Probably omnivorous Distinguishing Characteristics: Tiny size; long arms with clawed hands About Epidendrosaurus Archaeopteryx gets all the headlines, but theres a convincing case to be made that Epidendrosaurus was the first reptile to be closer to a bird than to a dinosaur. This pint-sized theropod was less than half the size of its more famous cousin, and its a sure bet that it was covered with feathers. Most notably, Epidendrosaurus appears to have been adapted to an arboreal (tree-dwelling) lifestyleits small size would have made it a simple matter to hop from branch to branch, and its long, curved claws were likely used to pry insects from tree bark. So was the late Jurassic Epidendrosaurus really a bird rather than a dinosaur? As with all of the feathered dino-birds, as these reptiles are called, its impossible to say. Its better to think of the categories of bird and dinosaur as lying along a continuum, with some genera closer to either extreme and some smack in the middle. (By the way, some paleontologists believe that Epidendrosaurus should actually be subsumed under another dino-bird genus, Scansoriopteryx.)